Precious Times
by tranquilsilence
Summary: This is a story of love, loss, and rememberance. I'm not very good at summaries, so I hope you enjoy my little story here! ^.^


*I do not own any of the characters in this story. Happy reading! ^.^*  
  
Ryoko Hakubi.. How would I describe Ryoko?  
  
Well, she certainly knew how to surprise me. She aggravated the princess countless number of times. Ryoko played with Sasami as if they were best friends. She was cynical towards Washu. She treated Mihoshi with as much patience she had, which wasn't very much to begin with. And I know dad really liked her; his camera never went to rest. But one thing was for sure. Without Ryoko Hakubi, life would just be a flat line. She really knew how to bring light into our lives.  
  
Oh, how I loved her. I loved seeing her face in the morning, red-eyed and tired, but still looking at me with those beautiful golden eyes. She scared the crap out of me, yeah. But nevertheless, she had to be, well, an angel with an attitude! Just thinking about her makes me smile.  
  
************************************************************************ 10 years ago ************************************************************************  
  
"Oh, Tenchi!" Ryoko's sultry voice echoed through the Masaki house. The space pirate had a mission to complete, and she wasn't going anywhere until she was satisfied.  
  
"Ryoko!! What are you doing in the MEN'S bathroom!?!? Give me some privacy!!" Poor Tenchi screamed, slamming the bathroom door in embarrassment. He couldn't help but wonder when this chaos would end. All he wanted was a quick shower without any space pirate trying to take a peek.  
  
"Tenchi, you think closing the door is going to stop me from coming in?" Ryoko laughed, having the time of her life. She loved getting on his nerves like this. Tenchi was just so cute in any kinds of situations. All of a sudden, Aeka grabbed her ear and pulled her across the hallway, as far away from the bathroom as possible.  
  
"OWW! What the hell are you doing!?!?" Ryoko screamed in pain, glaring at her rival who happened to be the first crown princess of Jurai.  
  
"You FILTHY DEMON! I will not have any obscenity in this house, and I will absolutely NOT have YOU torturing Lord Tenchi either!" Aeka's face turned red, veins ready to pop out.  
  
"Jeez, just because you don't know how to have some fun doesn't mean you can ruin mine. Why don't you go back to Jurai and tell on me to your mommy?" The space pirate 'rudely' stuck her tongue out at Aeka.  
  
"That's IT! I've had it with you!"  
  
.. -_-;;;  
  
So by the end of the morning before breakfast, the two women basically fried each other till they were out of energy. And Tenchi walked out of the bathroom, fully robed, and dragged his feet downstairs to Sasami's breakfast. Perhaps this will brighten his mood a bit.  
  
Breakfast went smoothly due to the lack of arguments between Ryoko and Aeka. Although there were some verbal comments (harsh comments at that), there weren't any breaking of the table or shattering of glasses.  
  
"So, what are you girls up to today? Since Tenchi's on break, maybe he could take all of you to the town!" Nobuyuki suggested. Ever since all these women dropped from the skies like blessings from heaven, at least his life was getting better. He didn't even mind the occasional damage to the house. He smiled a bit, thanking the luck he's had.  
  
"Well then, I think I will take Tenchi to one of those nice hotels they've got in Tokyo. Tenchi, we're gonna have fun, aren't we?" Ryoko smiled gracefully with a hint of mischief at her Tenchi who just laughed nervously.  
  
Little Washu looked at Ryoko. [Mind if I join you two, little Ryoko?] She expected Ryoko to glare at her in the mind's eyes, but Ryoko seemed to ignore her.  
  
["So, what are you girls up to today? Since Tenchi's on break, maybe he could take all of you to the town!" Nobuyuki suggested. Ever since all these women dropped from the skies like blessings from heaven, at least his life was getting better. He didn't even mind the occasional damage to the house. He smiled a bit, thanking the luck he's had.]  
  
"Well then, I think I will take Tenchi to one of those nice hotels they've got in Tokyo. Tenchi, we're gonna have fun, aren't we?" Ryoko smiled gracefully with a hint of mischief at her Tenchi who looked at her like she was crazy.  
  
"Ryoko, are you all right?" Tenchi asked. Ryoko could be weird sometimes, but usually weird in a sexual innuendo kind of way.  
  
"Lord Tenchi, she's just trying to get some attention. Don't worry about her. How about you and I go shopping for some earth clothes? I've been wearing these Juraian kimonos for over six months. How disgusting!" Aeka tried to take Tenchi's attention towards her, but it wasn't working.  
  
"Tenchi, I was just answering your father's question. So are you coming with me?" Ryoko hugged Tenchi's waist and rubbed her face on his chest with happiness. Tenchi looked like a profusely sweating stone, and Aeka was about to attack Ryoko when Washu took her daughter towards the lab.  
  
"Washu, what are you doing? I'm not going into that lab again. Remember what you did to me last time!?!?" Ryoko whined, trying with all her might to get away from the deranged scientist.  
  
"Yeah, yeah. I won't do anything to harm you, Ryoko. Just a little check- up, and you'll be ready to go."  
  
"But I'm not done with breakfast!"  
  
"You ate three bowls of rice with too much soup. You ate most of the fish. I'm sure even your stomach can't hold that much food. Now stop whining."  
  
"NOOoooooooooo!!!!" Ryoko's shouts could be heard as she was dragged to the broom closet as the rest of the family looked on with sweat-drops forming on their faces.  
  
"I wonder what that was all about," Sasami said with a worried look on her face.  
  
"Yeah, maybe Ryoko's getting fat." Mihoshi pondered to herself, chewing on a green pea, looking towards the closet/lab herself.  
  
In the lab, things weren't going so well. Washu need her daughter to lie on the metal bed for the check-up, but a space pirate who wasn't willing could be very difficult to work with.  
  
"Washu, if you think I'm going to just fall right into your trap, you're gonna have to think again."  
  
"Arghhhh! Ryoko, can't you just listen to me? There's something wrong with you! And I just want to make sure that it's not a serious thing!"  
  
"What's wrong with me then? Tell me first, because without an explanation, we're gonna have a really long day today."  
  
"Fine!" Washu played a video of the breakfast. She recorded all the events of the Masaki family, just in case the sweet boy Tenchi confessed his love to Ryoko. Washu really did love Ryoko, and she was very worried right now.  
  
In the video, everything seemed fine. "Exactly what am I trying to look for here, Washu?" Ryoko asked, losing her patience.  
  
"Just watch!" The video was going smoothly until Ryoko replied to Nobuyuki twice. Same words, same expression. But she had no idea she was doing it. Why would she have done that? Ryoko couldn't remember answering her twice.  
  
"Washu, what's going on?"  
  
"Well, I'm not sure, but I was listening in my head to you when that was happening. It was kind of like a dejavu, except you didn't see it twice, I did. To you, it was like a fraction of time was being folded. The first time you answered Nobuyuki was folded into a deep memory, and his question played again in your head just like a video."  
  
"Whatever. So what's wrong with me?" Ryoko asked casually, but Washu could see the worry in her eyes.  
  
"Well Ryoko, I really am not sure as of now. So you're just going to have to cooperate with me and lie down on that bed. You don't wanna go crazy like your momma did, do you?"  
  
"You're not my mom." Ryoko replied curtly as she reluctantly lied on the cold, metal bed. Washu looked at her daughter and held back her tears of sadness as she got ready to examine.  
  
************************************************************************ Present ************************************************************************  
  
Who would've known that this, this weird event in the morning would affect our lives so dramatically? I really had no clue. I thought I knew Ryoko pretty well, but I was so wrong. I didn't know just how much hatred she held in her life. How could I have known? This was the same beautiful woman who loved me with her heart. This was the same playful woman who caused all sorts of trouble, but always found a way out of getting in trouble.  
  
I can't remember very clearly, but I think I started to become worried as time passed slowly. Ryoko had been in the lab for over six hours. No one liked going into that lab with Washu. You see, Washu could be crazy sometimes. But I knew she loved Ryoko. They were mother and daughter. I know, that in itself seems impossible. It's a long story. I'm supposed to talk about Ryoko, right?  
  
Anyway, I miss her everyday. I miss her so much. And it's my fault that she'll never return to me. I was a fool, I really was. I hear her beautiful voice laughing in my head, and I want to kill myself because she's not here with me. She's not here with ME!!!  
  
  
  
*I love piano!!!!! -me-*  
  
^___^ 


End file.
